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Category Archives: History

November 9, 2020
by dave
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What gravestones tell us about our changing relationship with cats and dogs

In 1885, an elderly Scottish woman decided to bury her cat, Tom, in a nearby cemetery. Though the decision might not seem controversial to us, it caused a riot in Edinburg. The woman, hoping for a “decent burial” for Tom, … Continue reading →

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April 24, 2020
by dave
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What can ancient poop tell us about our relationship with dogs?

I always enjoy writing about cats and dogs, but I had an especially good time covering this story on ancient dog poop for Science last week. Here’s the gist: A team of molecular archaeologists (cool job!) had spent six years collecting ancient … Continue reading →

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April 8, 2020
by dave
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Could cats have stopped the Great Plague?

As we all deal with the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, I’ve been reminded of another plague: The Black Death, the most devastating pandemic the world has ever seen. By some estimates, as much as half of Europe’s population perished, and more … Continue reading →

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June 18, 2019
by dave
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Two new studies shed light on our early relationship with dogs

Much of dog domestication is still shrouded in mystery. We don’t know where dogs first evolved, for example, or even when this happened. So we’ve filled these blank pages with a lot of speculation. Early dogs must have been working … Continue reading →

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July 6, 2018
by dave
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America’s lost dogs and the origins of our canine companions

Dogs remain one of the biggest mysteries of domestication. Despite decades of research, we still don’t know where they came from–or even when they arose. But a couple of new studies are shedding light on when our relationship with dogs … Continue reading →

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November 20, 2017
by dave
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Ancient rock art provides window into early human-dog relationship

Humans domesticated dogs somewhere between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago. But although today’s dogs are family members, service animals, and war vets, we know little about man’s early relationship with canines. Now a new finding is providing a window into … Continue reading →

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June 20, 2017
by dave
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Ancient Egypt back in the limelight as epicenter for cat domestication

If you think cats came from Egypt, you’re both about a decade out of touch as well as eerily prescient. For years, historians believed that cats were domesticated in ancient Egypt. The thinking made sense: The felines are omnipresent in … Continue reading →

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June 1, 2017
by dave
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Were humans breeding dogs 9,000 years ago?

Scientists still haven’t figured out when–or even where–dogs were domesticated, but they’re getting a bit closer to understanding why they were domesticated in the first place. A new study published this month in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports suggests that humans were … Continue reading →

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September 22, 2016
by dave
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Did ancient dogs really help us hunt?

One of the most common assumptions about early dogs is that they were our hunting companions. Soon after they were domesticated–or perhaps the very reason they were domesticated in the first place–dogs helped us survive by tracking down and attacking … Continue reading →

Categories: History | Permalink

February 29, 2016
by dave
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Cats: So nice, we may have domesticated them twice

In 2013, I wrote about the idea that the rise of the housecat was inevitable. A study had just come out indicating that cats were domesticated in China 5,000 years ago. If true, this would have represented a second domestication … Continue reading →

Categories: History | Permalink

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